Memoirs and Correspondence of Admiral Lord de Saumarez, Vol. I

The loss sustained by the squadron in general, and by the Bristol in particular, in an action unexampled in point of duration, and in which it was finally repulsed, was very great: she had alone one hundred and eleven killed and wounded, including her gallant captain and several other officers.

During this severe conflict, Mr. Saumarez had a very narrow escape: at the moment he was pointing a gun on the lower-deck, of which he had the command, a shot from the fort entered the port-hole, struck the gun, and killed seven out of eight men who were stationed to work it. Some time afterwards, being called on deck to execute certain orders respecting the replacing the spring on the cable, he was standing close to Mr. Darley, a midshipman, for whom he had the greatest regard, when a shot took off the young man's head and covered Mr. Saumarez with his blood.

Captain Morris, after being carried below, lingered contrary to expectation, and hopes were formed that he would survive; when, unfortunately, his attendant being overcome with sleep, it is supposed the captain's bandages gave way, and, not having strength to awake him, he was found in the morning bathed in his blood. His dissolution becoming inevitable, one of the officers asked him if he had any direction to give with respect to his family; to which he nobly replied, "None! I leave them to the Providence of God, and the generosity of my country," and soon after expired. This engagement lasted thirteen hours: it was the first in which Mr. Saumarez had been present; and, after the very many in which he was subsequently engaged, he has been heard to declare it to have been one of the most severe he ever witnessed. Captain Scott, of the Experiment, lost his arm; and there were several death-vacancies for lieutenants.

Mr. Saumarez's conduct during the whole of this obstinate and bloody contest was deemed so especially meritorious, that the commodore expressed his highest approbation of it in the warmest and most flattering terms, and soon after the battle he promoted him to the rank of lieutenant. The following is a copy of his first acting commission:

"By Sir Peter Parker, Commander-in-chief of a squadron of his Majesty's ships to be employed on a particular service.

"Whereas I think it necessary for the good of his Majesty's service to have an Acting-lieutenant on board his Majesty's ship the Bristol, you are hereby required and directed to take upon you the office of Acting-lieutenant of his Majesty's ship Bristol strictly charging and commanding all the officers and company of the said ship to behave themselves jointly, and severally, in their respective employments, with all due respect and obedience unto you their said Lieutenant; and you are likewise to observe and execute the General Printed Instructions, and such orders and directions as you shall from time to time receive from your captain, or any other your superior officer, for his Majesty's service.

"For which this shall be your Order. Dated on board his Majesty's ship Bristol, in Five-fathom Hole, off Charlestown, the 11th day of July 1776.

    P. Parker.

"To Mr. James Saumarez, hereby

appointed to act as Lieutenant on

board his Majesty's ship Bristol,

until further orders.

"By command of the Commodore.

    John Read."

In this ship Acting-lieutenant Saumarez remained until the 23rd September; serving often with the army on shore, and on all occasions taking a distinguished part. He was actively employed in the boats of the Bristol on every landing that took place, from the first disembarkation of the troops in Gravesend Bay, to the landing at Rochelle from Frog's-neck. Lord Howe then commanded in person on this expedition, and hoisted his flag in the Carysfort, the gallant Captain Fanshawe. His lordship appointed Mr. Saumarez his aide-de-camp, and selected him to convey General Clinton, commanding the troops, to the vicinity of Rochelle, when he had the satisfaction of receiving the thanks of his lordship for his zealous exertions. All the boats were then ordered to join their respective ships off New York; an order, it may be supposed, not unwelcome after an absence of several weeks, during which officers and men had been subject to all the privations consequent on such a service, sleeping in boats, and scarcely having any change of clothing.

Saumarez was afterwards on duty up the North River, and had the honour of conveying Lord Cornwallis and his staff on board his boat in the first landing in the Jerseys; and on several occasions he was actively useful to his lordship, who repeatedly acknowledged his services. Being employed in the disembarkation of troops newly arrived, he discovered that his brother's regiment, the twenty-third Welsh (now Royal Welsh) Fusileers, was one of them; and soon after he had the happiness of meeting him, who, on his part, was not less agreeably surprised at the welcome and unexpected encounter.

Being at head-quarters when Fort Washington surrendered, the garrison, consisting of two thousand seven hundred men, having laid down their arms, Lieutenant Saumarez was the bearer of the tidings to the Bristol; but they appeared so incredible, that it was some time before Sir Peter Parker could be persuaded of their authenticity.

Rear-admiral Lord Shuldham, having on the 6th September, shifted his flag to the Bristol, Lieutenant Saumarez followed his commander, who then hoisted his broad pendant in the Chatham. He was therefore removed by Lord Viscount Howe, vice-admiral of the white, and commander-in-chief of all his Majesty's ships and vessels in North America, to the Chatham, as fifth lieutenant "for the time being." In this situation Lieutenant Saumarez so often and so particularly distinguished himself in the boats, and in command of the Lady Parker schooner, tender to the Unicorn, Captain Ford, that, on the 17th February 1778, he was appointed lieutenant commanding the Spitfire, a schooner-rigged galley, by special direction of the commander-in-chief, as will appear by the following order:

    By Commodore Hotham, on board the Preston.

"The Viscount Howe having directed that you shall command the Spitfire galley, in the room of Lieutenant Scott; you are hereby directed to repair on board the said galley, and take the command of her accordingly, using the utmost despatch in preparing and fitting her for a passage to Rhode Island.

    "Given on board the Preston, off
    New York, 17th February 1778.
    W. Hotham.

"To Lieut. Saumarez, hereby

appointed to command

H.M. galley, the Spitfire.

"By command. Titus Lewis."

Our young hero, who had been far less actively employed than he wished, had now obtained almost the height of his ambition,—in other words, a situation where he could have an opportunity of displaying his talents and intrepidity. He found his new vessel in the king's yard; and, having taken charge from her former commander, proceeded to fit out with surprising diligence. On the 23rd February he received twenty-three seamen from the Preston; and on the 27th a sergeant and eleven marines completed his complement of thirty-seven men, including himself and the carpenter; when he immediately weighed and made sail. It soon after blew a gale, but he succeeded in reaching the Brothers, where he anchored, and found H.M.S. Sphinx, and some traders: the next morning he weighed, and falling in with H.M.S. Falcon and convoy, they proceeded on their voyage. On the 4th of March strong gales obliged the convoy to put into Huntingdon Bay, where they were detained by stormy weather till the 13th of March. On the 15th the convoy reached Oyster-pond Bay, and on the 16th anchored off Fort Island, in company with the Eagle, Nonsuch, Apollo, Mermaid, Unicorn, Ariel, Maidstone, Grampus, and Stromboli; and here their active operations began. On the 28th of March an enemy's frigate was chased and run on shore in the Narraganset Passage, when Lieutenant Saumarez, together with the boats of the squadron, went to destroy her, she being protected by a battery on shore; the Spitfire was anchored about four hundred yards from this battery in twelve feet water, and, having got her long-bow gun to bear, engaged it while the boats boarded and set fire to the frigate: this occupied more than an hour, during which time the battery was silenced, but a brisk fire of musketry was kept up by the rebels; and the service being performed, the galley was towed out with little damage, five men being wounded: at nine she anchored in safety off Newton's Point. Soon after this a gale came on; the galley drove towards the rocks, and it was supposed she must be lost; but Lieutenant Saumarez cut his cable, and by a masterly act of seamanship saved his vessel, and gained the admiration of the whole squadron. During this period, Lieutenant Saumarez was under the orders of Commodore Griffith, of the Nonsuch, senior officer of his Majesty's ships and vessels at Rhode Island; and it will appear by the following secret order, that he was kept at the most important point in advance.

(Secret.)

"By Walter Griffith, Esq. Commander of a division of his Majesty's ships and vessels at Rhode Island.

"The employment of the galley under your command being necessary in the Seakonnet Channel, with the intention to intercept any armed vessels fitted by the rebels for putting to sea from the harbours or creeks communicating therewith; but more particularly to defeat any attempts they may propose for making a descent in force, or attacking the post occupied by the king's troops on the eastern shore of Rhode Island; you are therefore to proceed to the aforesaid channel, and put yourself under the command of the superior officer there, for those purposes accordingly: but you are, nevertheless, at liberty to move the galley (under the orders of the commanding officer there) from time to time, to prevent the enemy from being able to ascertain the position thereof, either for executing any meditated insult on the galley, or to pass you unobserved during the night; taking care, however, to keep as much as may be within such limits, as will fully enable you to effect the principal object of your appointment as aforesaid.

"It will become requisite for this end, to have your boats (or other better-appointed craft, with which you can in future be supplied), advanced at seasonable lines, both for the earlier discovery of any ships or vessels attempting to pass your station in the night, and preventing any other advantages attempted by the enemy under cover thereof.

"The crews of the boats so directed should be prudently cautious in boarding vessels of inconsiderable appearance, that they may not be exposed to suffer by the treacherous practice of the enemy in different modes to blow up and destroy your men; but a suitable discretion will be no less requisite on your part, that, in warning them of these hazards, they are not induced to become remiss in their exertions in the essential services.

"If the enemy should attempt to pass your station with any ship of apparent force, great attention will be requisite that you may not be misled by such not improbable expeditions to draw you from your station, and thereby facilitate the means to succeed with less risk in a meditated descent on the eastern shore of the island; which is to be at all times the object of your chief care to resist and oppose, by endeavouring to destroy the boats of the enemy employed on that occasion, or otherwise to prevent the further use of them in the attempt.

"It will therefore be incumbent on you, in conjunction with other armed vessels stationed with you in Seakonnet Channel, to intercept the said armed vessels (if possible) before they have advanced below your first anchoring station, and to keep secret such directions as the senior officer at the said anchorage may propose to adopt for that intent.

"You are to continue on this service until further orders; and I am to recommend your attention, that a careful watch is kept in the galley at all times, conformable to the tenour of the printed instructions given in that respect; and that every other precaution is taken to guard against the attempts of the rebel for the annoyance of the galley, wherein it is to be observed of all such enterprises, that those which are the least suspected are ever the most likely to be attended with success.

    "Given on board H.M.S. Nonsuch,
    at Rhode Island, 21st May 1778.
    S.W. Griffith.

"To Lieut. Saumarez, &c.

It should be mentioned here, that Rhode Island was taken possession of by his Majesty's forces under General Clinton and Sir Peter Parker on the 9th December 1776; and some description of it is necessary to show the arduous as well as perilous nature of the service on which our young hero was now employed. This island takes its name from the province, and lies in Narraganset Bay: it is fifteen miles in length from north to south, and three miles and a half broad; the north end is only three miles from Bristol, to which there is a ferry. The Seakonnet Passage separates it from the main on the north-west side, and the islands of Conanicut and Prudence lie in the passage on the south-east side, the town of Newport being in the south-east part of the island.

The Seakonnet Passage was in consequence of the above order allotted to the Spitfire. Lieutenant Saumarez was now under the orders of Captain Græme, and proceeded to his station: it appears from his journal, now in our possession, that he was constantly on the alert, and almost daily skirmishing with the enemy. On the 24th he had to sustain the attack of three armed boats which came off from Point Judith, and had nearly decoyed them on board; but they found their mistake in time to escape after a good drubbing. On the same evening he joined a detachment of five hundred men, which, under cover of the Flora, had landed above Bristol and burnt one hundred and twenty-five batteaux-plats, an armed galley, and a privateer of fourteen guns, besides destroying the greatest part of the town. On the 30th April a firing was heard in the direction of the Taunton: the Spitfire immediately weighed, and ran over to the enemy's shore, where Lieutenant Saumarez opposed his vessel to a field-piece, which returned his fire without doing any injury for a considerable time; this was meant as a diversion to enable the 54th regiment to attack unobserved, which in the mean time landed up the Taunton, destroyed eight sawmills and several flat-boats, and came off by the assistance of the Spitfire with inconsiderable loss.

On the 1st of May the Spitfire weighed, and was beating against the wind to obtain her station, when, by the vessel missing stays, she got aground on Sandy Hook. On this, the enemy immediately brought down a gun, but without effect. An anchor was carried out; the vessel was hove off without damage, and reached Fogland Battery, off which she anchored, and the next day reached her former station.

It will be needless to notice every occasion wherein the Spitfire was engaged with the enemy, which, while Lieutenant Saumarez commanded her, was no less than forty-seven times! but we shall proceed to the period when his operations in that vessel were drawing to a close. The Americans, who had publicly declared their independence on the 4th July 1776, had concluded a treaty with the French on the 13th March 1778, which was considered by the British government as a declaration of war; and the French ambassador being directed to withdraw, the following orders were issued to the squadron at Rhode Island by Commodore John Brisbane, who had now taken the command:

"By Captain John Brisbane, Captain of H.M.S. Flora, and senior officer of his Majesty's ships and vessels at Newport, Rhode Island.

"In pursuance of an order from the Lord Viscount Howe, vice-admiral of the white, and commander-in-chief of his Majesty's ships and vessels employed on a particular service, you are hereby required and directed to MAKE WAR UPON, take, or destroy any part of the French squadron lately arrived on the coasts of this continent, as well as other ships of war of that nation appearing on the coasts of North America, to the utmost of your ability, until further orders, keeping this secret. Dated on board H.M.S. Flora, at Newport, Rhode Island, 26th July 1778.

    (Signed) J. Brisbane.

"To Lieutenant Saumarez, commanding

the Spitfire, galley."

This order was transmitted with an enclosure, designated "Copy of a paragraph of a letter received from Lord Viscount Howe, dated off Sandy Hook, 19th July 1778."

"As there is not a sufficient naval force for the defence of Rhode Island, and none can be sent while the French squadron, at anchor off Sandy Hook, continues so much superior to that under my command, it may not be unseasonable to remind you that you are at liberty to apply the force under your direction, by landing of guns and men for the service of the batteries; dismantling, and even destroying the ships, to strengthen the defences of the post in the most effectual manner, in case of an attack upon the post, more especially when no longer in prospect of rendering better assistance under the same circumstances, or preventing the capture of the ships.

"Every captain or commander is therefore directed to attend to the foregoing paragraph, and act from circumstances, in the best and most effectual manner possible for the defence of the post, and ship or vessel under his command, so as to answer the intention of his lordship. Dated on board H.M.S. Flora, Newport Harbour, 27th July 1778.